Both Joe Max Higgins and Will Sanders have the month of September circled on their calendar.
For Higgins, CEO of the Golden Triangle Development LINK, that is the month a potential tenant for the 95-acre site at The Island, formerly occupied by KiOR and a chip-mill company, will make its final site inspection.
For Sanders, director of the Lowndes County Port Authority, September is the month the two companies who purchased the KiOR equipment should have the site cleared.
Georgia Renewable Power and Renewable Energy Group bought the KiOR assets on the site through a bankruptcy auction in October 2015. As part of the sale, the companies agreed to have the site clear by the end of that year, although neither Sanders nor Higgins felt that would be possible.
The companies were given an extension through March of this year, with an agreement on a monthly rental fee through the end of June.
Sanders said Wednesday that while much progress has been made, there is still much work to be done before the site is completely cleared.
“They didn’t build the KiOR plant overnight,” Sanders said. “So we know it’s going to take some time. But I’m encouraged by what I’ve seen. They’ve removed something like 45 truckloads of material to date, and the work continues. There’s a 15,000 square-foot building that has been completely removed and work continues out there every day. We expect the site will be cleared by the end of September.”
Sanders said he has negotiated a new contract with both companies, and while he would not divulge what the companies will pay each month, he said the monthly fee goes up each month until the work is finished.
“We believe it’s a reasonable agreement,” Sanders said. “I think the new agreement will be an incentive for them to clear the site as soon as possible.”
Higgins, meanwhile, is less optimistic.
“I drove around the site about a week ago,” Higgins said. “I ran into one of the contractors and I asked him how long he thought it would take to get everything off the site. He said it could take as long as a year.”
For Higgins, waiting for the site to be cleared has been a source of frustration.
Going into the year, there were three large companies who were looking at the site. Two of those companies have chosen other sites. The third, Higgins said, will do its final site inspect on The Island in September and will make its decision In December. He said the prospective tenant plans to build its facilities in two $150 million phases.
“We kept hearing the site would be cleared in March,” Higgins said. “That’s what we told these companies. Well, it wasn’t cleared in March. Then it was supposed to be cleared by the end of June. Again, that’s the information we passed along to the company that’s looking at the site. Now, it’s September. But, who knows?”
Higgins stopped short of saying the delay clearing the site has crippled prospects for landing a new tenant.
“What it does mean is that every time they are told the site is cleared and it’s not, you have to come up with a story,” Higgins said. “That’s not good.”
Sanders, meanwhile, said he is working to find a diplomatic resolution.
“We want to be fair to the companies who bought the equipment,” Sander said. “And we also want to work with the LINK to make sure we have a great tenant out there because we know how important that is to everyone who lives here.”
Calls to officials from Georgia Renewable Power and Renewable Energy Group were not returned this morning.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.